No one can hear you scream in space, but they can hear you roar — and the iconic sci-fi/horror franchise "Alien" will roar once more in a new comic book series from Marvel.
"Superman" writer Phillip Kennedy Johnson and "Iron Man: artist Salvador Larroca are hatching this series, with the first issue going on sale March 24.
"The theme boils down to a man at the end of his life deciding what his legacy will be. Marvel's Alien comic series is the story of Gabriel Cruz, a Weyland-Yutani security executive who gave up everything for his long, violent, and morally-questionable career, and is eventually discarded by the company anyway," Johnson tells Space.com's sister site, Newsarama.
"But when something goes horribly wrong at his old duty station, he goes on one more mission to save his estranged son, and we learn about the secrets he's been keeping all these years, and his relationship with Weyland-Yutani's most valuable and most terrifying asset."
Something tells us those "secrets" and something going "horribly wrong" is in fact Xenomorphs.
'Alien' Horror: 9 Terrifying Xenomorphs from the 'Alien' Movies
This is part of a renewed effort for the "Alien" franchise after its acquisition by Marvel's parent company Disney as part of their 20th Century Fox buyout.. The publisher says this new Alien comic book series will showcase new and classic characters from Earth and beyond, making it a perfect jumping-on point for both hardcore fans and newcomers uninitiated into its visceral sci-fi horrors.
Johnson is balancing writing Marvel's Alien while at the same time taking over as DC's primary Superman writer, on both Action Comics and his self-titled comic book series. Quite a mix of alien dramas, but he explains how his goals are different for each.
"When people ask me about my goals for Superman, I sometimes say that I'm chasing the electric, aspirational feeling I got as a kid watching the opening credits of the 1978 'Superman: The Movie,' trying to capture that feeling for my readers," Johnson says. "But when I write 'Alien,' I'm chasing nightmares."
"I want readers to feel the same awe and wonder that I felt seeing the Derelict and the corpse of the mysterious Space Jockey. I want them to feel the same connection to our characters that I felt with Ripley, Newt, Hicks, and Bishop," the writer continues. "But above all, I want them to feel the same cold-sweat panic and can't-look-away horror that I felt when I saw an alien rip through John Hurt's rib cage for the first time. And with the stories we have planned and Salvador Larroca bringing them to life, I'm confident fans will soon know exactly the feelings I'm talking about."
Watch for Marvel Comics' "Alien #1" invading comic shops March 24.
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